When a public figure talks about being autistic, it can do real good: challenging stereotypes and helping people understand. The way Gregg Wallace’s autism diagnosis entered the story of his departure from MasterChef did the opposite.
In July 2025, after reports that he had been dropped as a presenter, Wallace said he had been diagnosed as autistic and suggested his employers had failed to take his disability into account. Whether or not he intended it, many people heard the message that autism might explain, or excuse, the behaviour he was accused of.
For autistic people who have spent years working to be understood and respected at work, that was harmful as well as frustrating. Here is why.
What happened
An investigation commissioned by Banijay UK, the company that produces MasterChef, looked at 83 allegations against Wallace. It substantiated 45 of them, including inappropriate sexual language and humour and one incident of unwelcome physical contact, most of them dating from between 2005 and 2018. The BBC said it had no plans to work with him again.
Before the findings were published, Wallace posted on Instagram that he had been diagnosed with autism and that his managers had failed to “investigate my disability” or “protect me”. In his response to the report, he said a late autism diagnosis had helped him understand how he is perceived, and that certain patterns of his behaviour may have been “misread”. Banijay’s chief executive said his neurodiversity was relevant to some of the behaviours identified.
The reaction from the neurodivergent community was swift. As The Week reported, Neurodiversity in Business warned that autism is not a free pass for bad behaviour and that his defence risked stigmatising autistic people.
The problem with linking autism to misconduct
Autism affects communication, sensory processing and how someone experiences the world. It can affect how a person reads tone or body language. It does not make someone sexist, and it is not a reason to avoid accountability.
Headlines that put “autism” next to “misconduct” feed a stereotype autistic people have been pushing back against for decades: that they are rude, offensive or unable to respect boundaries. That stereotype already stops autistic people from being hired, promoted or even invited to interview.
Autistic people learn, reflect and adjust all the time. Many spend huge amounts of energy masking to fit in with workplace expectations. To suggest autism causes offensive behaviour is misleading, and insulting to the many autistic adults who are respectful and professional every day, often in environments that weren’t designed for them. Our page on autism in the workplace sets out what autistic employees actually need.
Why media narratives matter
Most people form their view of autism from the media. When a well-known figure ties a diagnosis to a scandal and the coverage turns it into a soundbite, the public absorbs it.
For hiring managers and HR teams who don’t know much about neurodivergence, those headlines create fear. Autism starts to look like a risk, something unpredictable that will bring complaints. Bias creeps into decisions made behind closed doors. Autistic applicants get overlooked, and neurodivergent employees get labelled as difficult. We have seen similar patterns when neurodiversity gets pulled into political and media debates.
The impact on neurodivergent people
For autistic people at work or looking for work, this kind of story has real consequences. It can mean more stigma and fewer opportunities. It can lead colleagues to question someone’s intentions. It makes people more hesitant to disclose, because they fear being misunderstood. And it can feed internalised shame, the sense that their differences are something to hide or apologise for.
It also distracts from the real barriers neurodivergent employees face: missing adjustments, poor communication, sensory overload and being judged against standards built for one kind of brain.
What a better response could look like
A diagnosis later in life can be a lot to process, and it is natural to look back at your past in a new light. But framing and accountability still matter. Here is the kind of statement we wish we had heard (our words, not his):
“Being diagnosed as autistic has helped me understand myself better, and I’m still learning what that means. I take full responsibility for anything I said or did that made people uncomfortable. Autism may affect how I communicate, but it doesn’t excuse poor behaviour.”
That puts self-understanding and responsibility first, rather than deflection.
What employers should take from this
If you are an employer reading this and feeling unsure, that’s understandable. You might be asking how to support neurodivergent employees without getting it wrong, or what to do if someone links a conduct issue to their diagnosis. Those are fair questions, but they shouldn’t lead to avoidance.
Most neurodivergent people aren’t asking for special treatment. They want clarity, reasonable adjustments and respect. Understanding the difference between traits, support needs and conduct makes it easier to treat everyone fairly. Hold everyone to the same standard of respect: neurodivergence can affect how someone communicates or takes in feedback, but it doesn’t lower the bar on dignity or accountability.
And make it safe to talk. If someone feels able to say “tone of voice is hard for me to read, could you give me feedback in writing?”, that’s a good outcome. Our post on workplace banter, ADHD and dismissal looks at how a tribunal handled a related situation, and how neurodiversity shows up at work explains the traits managers are likely to see.
Final thoughts
The damage here came from blurring the line between explanation and excuse, not from anyone receiving a diagnosis. Autism is a difference that deserves understanding, not a scapegoat. Employers can learn from this moment, and make sure it isn’t the story that shapes how they see autistic candidates and colleagues.
How Enna can help
Stories like this one tend to surface the questions managers are nervous to ask. Our Neurodiversity 101 workshop gives teams accurate, practical understanding of autism and other neurotypes, and neuroinclusive management conversations training helps managers handle feedback and conduct issues fairly and confidently.
If you want to know whether your policies treat neurodivergent staff fairly, start with our free neuroinclusion maturity assessment or book a call with our team.
